The staff part of my besom is completed. I am really happy with how it has turned out and I can’t wait to put all of the elements together.
The Staff
This is what it looked like when I first selected the length of Oak I wanted. We have a huge oak tree and had branches lying about from the last time it was pruned. I wanted Oak because it is very connected to me.
Post Barked
Let me tell you, de-barking oak is not an easy process. It took me ages and the pain, oh the pain let me tell you! Because oak is a hardwood the bark is not as easy to remove as you would think. It took me a good two hours and even then I knew it would need copious amounts of sanding to get it cleaner.
Sanded
This is what it looked like sanded. Oak is a lovely wood to work with and the thing I like most is that the character stayed in the wood even after I sanded it (yes, hand-sanded).
Waxed
This is what it looks like finished – insofar as being waxed and polished. It smells divine as it has a lavender beeswax polish. I am really happy with the overall end result and I can’t wait to put it all together! I chose to leave the knobby bits and other parts on the staff as I think it gives it a tonne of character and makes it look really old. (The wood itself is actually quite old because the tree is).
More pictures of the waxed finished staff
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